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Rifle Scopes What's the best scope choice for a 308 win?

Willie Miller V

Sergeant
Full Member
Minuteman
Jul 20, 2013
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I have on the fence about a scope choice for my remington 700 LTR 20" 308 for some time. I have decided for the money that I can get it for is a Leupold mark4 lr/t 4.5-14x50 illuminated tmr reticle. One reason is that it is a long range scope for a short barreled 308 and keeping it compact and weight down. I am able to get this for under $800 but it's second focal plane which doesn't matter to me. Am I going the wrong way as optics and range clarity or is there something better out there? I want target turrets so that is a must and would like it to be illuminated. I don't know much about the mark 4 but the NF NXS scopes I have are too big and are on other rifles. Any help or feedback would be much appreciated.
 
Assuming you mean this scope: Leupold 4.5-14x50 Mark 4 LR/T 30mm Riflescope and it weighs in @23oz.

That particular scope is SFP and has MIL Reticle and MOA adjustments and 72 MOA of elevation adjustment.

For less than $200 and & 7 oz. more you could have this: Burris 3-15x50 XTR II 34mm Rifle Scope
FFP Mil/Mil Illuminated w/110 MOA of elevation adjustment.

Or for less than $200 and 1.5 oz more you could have this: Bushnell 3-12x44 Elite Tactical 30mm Rifle Scope
You would be getting 1.5x on the bottom end and giving up 2.5X on the top end, but getting FFP Illuminated Mil/Mil and 80 moa of elevation adjustment.

Either of those scopes features are more than a good trade off, for a little weight.
 
I am shooting paper, hogs, deer, out to 600/800 yards. Also,have a 20 moa rail mount on the action.
 
I'll second the Bushnell elite tactical line. I've got two of the G2 reticles and the illum mildot. I use the mildot on my .308 AR for pigs and it's top notch.
 
I'll second the Bushnell elite tactical line. I've got two of the G2 reticles and the illum mildot. I use the mildot on my .308 AR for pigs and it's top notch.

I 3rd the Bushnell Elite line. I see the FFP G2DMR 3.5-21X50 LNIB for under 1K and the 3-12X44 Elite for even less in the classified scopes for sale section of SH.
 
The best thing for a 308 is metric open sights. Your a puss if you use a scope, but if have to have a scope get a jelly bean/jelly bean reticle and turret setup
 
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I have the same rifle and just mounted a Vortex HS-T 4.5-16x44, SFP. I paid around $560 including shipping and within 6 rounds was hitting within 4" @ about 500 yds with 150 gr hunting rounds. It's easily the nicest glass I've ever owned and for the money was the best deal I found. I highly recommend you take a look at the Vortex line of scopes. Good luck.
 
800 yards is a long way with a .308 for deer............two legged and 4 legged are different.

As for scope the MK 4 leupold in 3.5x 10 should be adequate for the .308.

Your velocity is already down due to the 20" barrel.

Good for urban shooting.........
 
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also how much you want to spend?
over $2k S&B, Razor Gen II alot other options.

for something in $1500rnage SWFA, bushnell is good choice. for something budget under $500 primary arms one is good, as well some bushnell line.
 
well let me know for $300 bucks find me a ffp mil-dot scope. there are alot budget builder used it.

My point is the guy is looking at decent scopes and is obviously not a cheap fuck and you recommend that pile of garbage that you admit you have no experience with. He mentioned nothing about a $300 budget, in fact he didn't mention a budget at all.

As for the budget builders using them, look at all the retards that bought wotacs, counter snipers, BSA's, and falcons. They're prices of shit too and people still bought them and many didn't have enough of a clue to realize their scopes were jacked.
 
well let me know for $200 bucks find me a ffp mil-dot scope.

You said 300 bucks then changed it to 200 so here you go.

You can get a great starter scope SWFA SS fixed power Mildot for under 300 bucks here on this sight all the time in the used scope section.
If you want a new one they are 300 bucks. Use link below.

SWFA Riflescopes SWFA SS Riflescopes MRAD
 
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You said 300 bucks then changed it to 200 so here you go.

You can get a great starter scope SWFA SS fixed power FF Mildot for under 300 bucks here on this sight all the time in the used scope section.
If you want a new one they are 300 bucks. Use link below.

SWFA Riflescopes SWFA SS Riflescopes MRAD

FF is not FFP lol even for $300 find a mildot variable power first focal plane. if the op has unlimted budget sure get S&B, US optic etc etc. but for something 200-300 hundreds bucks find me somethign similar in spec
 
My point is the guy is looking at decent scopes and is obviously not a cheap fuck and you recommend that pile of garbage that you admit you have no experience with. He mentioned nothing about a $300 budget, in fact he didn't mention a budget at all.

As for the budget builders using them, look at all the retards that bought wotacs, counter snipers, BSA's, and falcons. They're prices of shit too and people still bought them and many didn't have enough of a clue to realize their scopes were jacked.

did you even read my thread, or just start bashing it, he didn't mention price range hence, i put different scope example with different price range there. i dont own pa scope but i did use it, and did alot search about it.
there are quite a few good review on this scope. as for pricing, sure SWFA, S&B is better, but find me a first focal plan mil dot variable power scope under $300. my point was at that $500 or below this scope fit the criteria.
Gear Review: Primary Arms 4-14X44 Mil Dot FFP Scope | The Truth About Guns
 
Former BSA owner here! Yeah they are junk but that was all I could afford. Around 500 the new Nikon prostaff 5 is a really nice scope or go with the vortex hs-t. Both are very nice in there price range.
 
OP, look at the Leupold Mk 6 3-18. It's lighter, FFP, and is of the newer Leupold generation. There are deals to be found here in the P/X or from some of the vendors.
 
FF is not FFP lol even for $300 find a mildot variable power first focal plane. if the op has unlimted budget sure get S&B, US optic etc etc. but for something 200-300 hundreds bucks find me somethign similar in spec

Common sense > you
:)

Willie needs to buy the best glass he can afford that meets his needs.
 
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Does anyone agree on a good quality scope brand, that you don't have to mortgage your house in order to afford the magnification you want? I've had and have plenty of good glass. Mostly Leupold's. But also a couple Zeiss and a couple Swarovski's. On my AR-15 platforms I'm running a couple EOTech's. A 552 on one and an HHS II EXPS W/ magnifier set up on another. And an ACOG on my RRA. The most magnification I have is my Swaro 4-12x50 that's mounted on my AR-10. I like magnification. I hate not being able to see the holes in my targets. And the Swaro just about does it but not quite. Most of my shooting is done @ 100-200 yards. There simply are no safe long distance ranges in my corner of "farm country". And the gun range I belong to is only 200yds. But, I'm looking at going farther out. So I want more mag. power in a scope. Two reasons. One, so I can see my holes when I'm shooting close range without having to drag out my spotting scope. And two, so I can see the target when I decide to shoot longer ranges. Schmidt & Bender makes a good scope, we can all agree on that. But for the magnification I want 5-25x56 at $4K, or better yet 3-27x56 at $6.5K, I can't realistically spend that kind of change and expect to stay married. Not to mention it would take two years of saving "gun spending money" to get the $6.5K. Even the Leupold Mark 6 3-18 that bogeybrown mentions is a good option, but at 2 grand it's still a ton of bread. Of course there's Night Force too. Which I'd like to get. But still pushing 2K plus. The least expensive I've found is the SWFA SS 3-15x42 @ $700. Now that's affordable considering I still have to pay for the GAP or AI rifle it will go on. Any thoughts? I don't want a piece of shit, but I still want to be able to buy groceries. Lol
 
I would recommend getting a used SWFA 5-20 HD scope so you can stay close to the price point of the mk4. I really like the scope and think they are a great value.
 
That's a Hell of an idea. Good magnification. But where to buy used scopes you can trust? I was taught not to buy used glass from someone you don't know/trust. Can easily be money wasted.
 
I've bought quite a few scopes used. Just make sure the brand of scope you are buying has a good warranty should you need it. I've had no issues buying scopes off of this site. It seems like there are plenty of options and honest sellers on Sniper's Hide's for sale section. I wouldn't hesitate buying a used scope as long as it's a reputable brand.
 
No one has mentioned Vortex. Nice scopes, good features, reasonable prices, and SUPERB warranty.

I am running a Viper PST 6-24x FFP on my Rem based .308. I like it.
 
I have the same rifle and just mounted a Vortex HS-T 4.5-16x44, SFP. I paid around $560 including shipping and within 6 rounds was hitting within 4" @ about 500 yds with 150 gr hunting rounds. It's easily the nicest glass I've ever owned and for the money was the best deal I found. I highly recommend you take a look at the Vortex line of scopes. Good luck.
I have this same scope that I bought on here from rangerwalker (pm him for a price). I was using it as a spotting scope at 500yds when my buddy was shooting. After I got the elevation dialed in, it was ringing the 10" steel at 500 no problem. I think easily could do out to a thousand with it. For less than $500 shipped to my front door, I think it is awesome.
 
Voltron- I see they have two models of the SWFA 5-20 HD. One with illuminated reticle and one without. So how good (brightness, clarity, sight picture) is this scope? Is the illuminated reticle necessary to see in lowlight? No pun intended LL. Or does it gather enough light to make dusk shooting possible without the illumination? I don't mind illuminated reticles at all, but seeing as I've already got plenty of optics with batteries, the fewer I need to worry about, the better.
 
I see they have the vortex PST in a FFP and SFP model. My only concern with FFP is will I be able to see the markings in the reticle subtentions at low magnification. My eyes aren't that bad. Don't wear corrective lenses. But I have a slight stigmatism that can make things a tad fuzzy at times. Usually when I need clarity the most. Will I still be able to focus the reticle/sight picture to fit my needs on an FFP?
 
i have the swfa 3-15 and really like it. i have 2 weaver tactical 3-15x50s and really like them. i have a bushnell hdmr i really like it. i have a 3.5-10 tmr mk4 and really like it. i have had 2 of the burris xtrs they were pretty nice. i had a bushnell 2.5-16 tactical it was pretty nice. if you spend that much you will get a great scope. dont agonize over the decision find one the a reticle and features you like and buy it. if you want to save some cash watch gun broker and ebay and the for sale section here and anywhere else you might find a deal. i just picked up a brand new weaver 3-15x50 tactical ffp mildot $412. every scope i have listed i can see bullet holes at 300 yards with. in my opinion the weavers or the leupold have the best glass of the scopes i have listed. followed closely by the burris and trailed by the swfa 3-15 and the bushies which i thought were very similar. glass quality is subjective
 
I see they have the vortex PST in a FFP and SFP model. My only concern with FFP is will I be able to see the markings in the reticle subtentions at low magnification. My eyes aren't that bad. Don't wear corrective lenses. But I have a slight stigmatism that can make things a tad fuzzy at times. Usually when I need clarity the most. Will I still be able to focus the reticle/sight picture to fit my needs on an FFP?
You can see the sub tensions on the 6-24 ffp on 6x yes
 
No one has mentioned Vortex. Nice scopes, good features, reasonable prices, and SUPERB warranty.

I am running a Viper PST 6-24x FFP on my Rem based .308. I like it.

This is also the scope I use on my 700 .308. Does everything I need it to.
 
Leupold Mark 4 are some of the best, most durable optics for the money. The scope you want would be a great choice, but I prefer the 6.5-20 or 8.5-25.
 
I'll throw the Sightron 6-24 FFP into the mix as well. Excellent glass for the price.